Early Life

Duskglow’s parents, Mothflutter and Poppytoes, had the perfect love story. Childhood friends, they were a young and beautiful pair that had their first litter young and remained enamored with each other throughout their lives. Their first litter, all females, became strong and healthy warriors just as their second litter was beginning their life. That litter, too, was full of beautiful, healthy females, and their parents could not have been more proud. Mothflutter and Poppytoes were quite happy with the size of their family, and went about their lives as such. It was a surprise, then, when Dusk-kit appeared!

Mothflutter hadn’t even noticed the signs of her pregnancy until she was pulled aside by her medicine cat, who had skillfully recognized the approach of her third litter. Though surprised, both she and Poppytoes were thrilled, and their final litter arrived soon after in the form of a single, handsome little kitten. Dusk-kit was immediately showered from all sides in attention from his ecstatic older sisters, and remained the center of absolute attention during his time in the nursery.

Dusk-kit did not yet have the cognitive awareness to realize that he was being born into a time of unrest; Merely a week after his kitting, Dixie the kittypet interrupted the gathering to demand the death of a ShadowClan elder for past war crimes. So too was he focused on milk and mossballs when Paleshine was murdered by Roman and his dogs. At two moons old, however, he did find himself perturbed when Galesigh returned home, mutilated and afraid, after being attacked by kittypets. He did not understand why they looked so different after the attack, but certainly did not like it. Thus, he decided, he did not like the cats who caused it.

At three moons old, Dusk-kit fancied himself an explorer of camp (nevermind the ever-present chaperone in his shadow). It was silly, Dusk-kit declared, when Twilightdancer and Duskwind fled RiverClan to join ThunderClan instead. All his sisters were in RiverClan, not ThunderClan, and they were the best cats in the whole world, so why leave?

One of Dusk-kits closest siblings, Twilightmist, was murdered at Dixie and Roman’s attack on the gathering in January, one moon before Dusk-kit’s graduation. His family grieved heavily over her corpse, but Dusk-kit was kept in the nursery, his parents having realized that he was far too sensitive and sheltered to witness the injuries that’d been inflicted. Dusk-kit complained, “She’s just sleeping, why can’t I go see her? What’s the big deal?” When she was buried, Dusk-kit was told that she’d gone away to a mysterious fifth clan, but she’d be keeping an eye on him from a distance. Dusk-kit accepted this without a second thought, and was instilled with a deep and immediate faith in StarClan.

Apprenticeship

Dusk-kit was named Duskpaw to the raucous cheering of his large family, and was apprenticed to a kind-hearted warrior named Bloomheart. Sagestar had seen the writing on the wall and knew that Duskpaw would require a gentle, firm, and overwhelmingly patient paw. His apprenticeship was otherwise unremarkable; He struggled with the distinction of plants and fish, but found himself a skilled swimmer. Though he could not keep straight what made a trout so different from a salmon, or elderberries so different from blueberries, he was efficient and skilled at hunting and gathering all of the aforementioned.

Bloomheart was able to work through Duskpaw’s distinct learning style slowly and carefully, the two developing a system to help him keep track of the dangers of the territory. They became close, and though Duskpaw had to work much harder than his denmates to absorb all of the knowledge that he needed to, he and Bloomheart enjoyed the challenge and were able to keep him on track. At nine moons, however, his progress stumbled as the kittypet threat finally pierced into the heart of their camp.

Roman’s dogs ripped through den walls and cat flesh alike, grievously injuring many and killing many more. Bloomheart was able to rush Duskpaw to safety at the cost of severe injuries. She was lucky, though, as many cats, including several kittens, lost their lives. These kittens, Lilykit and Lotuskit, were sent to StarClan as warriors by Sagestar, named Lilyshade and Lotuscloud. A bit older now, Duskpaw had a more firm grasp on the meaning of death, but retained a firm belief that the cats who had left them wouldn’t be lost to him forever. His resolute assurance in the afterlife was a target of ire for some, but was generally a positive spark in an otherwise dire situation. A few days later, they returned home to tend to their wounds and bury their dead.

Duskpaw had proven throughout his training that despite the coddling he’d received, he was a hardworking and loyal cat with a heart of gold. For his glowing optimism and unrelenting work ethic, he was given the name Duskglow.

Warrior Life

The attention he’d received as a young cat never stopped as Duskglow entered adulthood. His sisters had formed a sort of protective ring around him, always watching over the young tom, and so Duskglow had retained his bouncing social tendencies. ShadowClan was driven from their home and forced to flee to ThunderClan's camp. Soon after, Flamestar and Martensmirk of WindClan were discovered by a RiverClan patrol. As dissent too drove WindClan from their home and the clan of the moores were forced to seek shelter with RiverClan, Duskglow opened them with a wide smile and bright eyes. Why, it just made sense, he thought. More paws to help meant more food for everyone, right? The threat of the rebels was not lost on him, though much of the nuance was. With ShadowClan seeking asylum in ThunderClan, Duskglow had the brilliant idea of suggesting that maybe the rebels could just make their own clan and go away if they were so intent on having their own leadership. He wasn’t quite sure why nobody took to this idea the way he did…

One of these WindClan refugees, a fellow named Aphidflight, brought ill news. Silkyflower, healer of RiverClan, had recently adopted rogue kittens. These three kits, he declared, were sired by himself, their mother being a RiverClan molly named Mallowbrook. Mallowbrook was stripped of her name and forced into the outsider lands for several moons, while Duskglow was left with only a vague understanding of what the problem even was. After all, the kittens seemed happy and safe, and no offense to those WindClanners, they sure were nice after all! But they were all terribly skinny, and didn't even have a home to take the kittens back to. They should consider giving more kittens to RiverClan. It didn't matter, Duskglow would tell a friend wisely. We'll all be warriors in StarClan someday, and then it won't have mattered which clan we were.

More rebels trickled in - Pansybee and her beau, Icestep. Sagestar was willing to grant Icestep asylum despite Flamestar's hesitance, due to an encounter in which Icestep kills the rebel Coyotecoo. Rebel, ex-rebel, who cares? They're here now, and they look sorry, says Duskglow, so let 'em prove themselves!

The party had to end sometime, and on August 12th, Sagestar and Flamestar's combined forced struck, flooding the WindClan camp to flush out the rebel occupants. They had to crawl through WindClan tunnels, an experience that Duskglow did NOT enjoy, thank you very much. Worms in his fur was not a part of his strict beauty regiment. During the battle, Duskglow tusseled with a rebel named Woodbelly, nearly losing his eye to a well-placed slash from the rebel. In the end, Duskglow drove him off, fueled by intense anger sparked when Woodbelly pulled at his hair, ripping it out.

Several RiverClan cats turned traitor during the battle, though ultimately joined the other rebels in defeat once Oakstar dies at Martensmirk's claws. Viperspots, Sandpiper, Ibisstrike, Cricketcoo and Mushroomshade all faced trial by Sagestar, the former two losing their suffixes and being exiled, while the latter three were demoted to apprenticeship, never to be eligible for special positions or leadership opportunities again.

Across the river, Fernstar and Stonestar were preparing their own attack. ShadowClan was swiftly retaken in a combined attack, with Starlingmoon's execution at Stonestar's claws signaling the end of the rebellion for all. Within moons, a sense of normality returned, the apprentices resuming their training and the warriors who were unfortunate enough to graduate under rebel rule given new names by their restored leadership. It was sad to see one of Aphidflight's kits, Shinepaw, depart to WindClan to be with their sire's family, and though Duskglow wished them well, he'd never understand their decision. Despite this peace, rumors ran amok, with Sagestar sending runners to visit each other clan. It would seem to Duskglow that perhaps this lull was simply that - a lull before another great storm. Or not, Duskglow was more concerned with accidentally eating bees than some looming threat on the horizon.

Ah, Minkdancer... A molly always out of Duskglow's reach, but oh so pleasant to follow behind. She and Bristleflame had always been close, and Duskglow bawled like a happy baby at their mateship ceremony. Minkdancer deserved some happiness after the exile of her sister Sandpiper, now Sand. Refusing to be forgotten, however, the exiled rebel appeared at the ceremony, murder and envy in her gaze. She yowled about Bristleflame being stolen from her, raising a claw to strike Minkdancer down, when she was suddenly thrown off the side of the gorge by Killdeerpaw, her own son. Never having experienced such a tumultuous sibling relationship, Duskglow was deeply disturbed, seeking the comfort of his own sisters in the aftermath.

Duskglow's great battle wound during the WindClan takeback took time to heal, and he was forbidden from swimming while the dressings were over his eye. When he was finally freed from the patch, Bluebellblaze offered to take him out swimming. The two frolicked and skipped along the training banks, splashing water and diving to flex their aquatic muscles after a long period of rest. Duskglow was a romantic, and had always been rather cuddly with his clanmates, but when the two draped themselves over a soft sheet of ferns and laid in the sun's rays to dry, he felt his heart begin to move fast, his ears and cheeks glow especially bright in the sun. He liked laying beside her, watching the sky and talking about cloud-swimming birds. When he fell asleep in her warm embrace, tucked against her soft chest as her tongue smoothed his fur, Duskglow just knew that he had to make time to spend more of his days basking with her.

It seemed that the season of kitting was close at hand, as Cloudyrose stepped down temporarily to have her kittens, Dawnshimmer temporarily filling in as deputy.

At a gathering soon after, the leaders revealed that they and their healers were receiving signs from the stars. It is decided that three cats from each clan were to be sent beyond the territories. From RiverClan, Cindermask, Mistyshore and Lilybreeze were chosen. Duskglow couldn't suppress a bitter dose of disappointment, as he'd always been something of a zealot. They must have their reasons, he decided. In the days to follow, however, he'd daydream about taking a fun trip to the lands of StarClan and seeing his sister Twilightmist again. The journey began 10 days after the gathering. At that time, the chosen cats met at the gathering place and departed, leaving behind cats like Duskglow who were hopeful that they would return with divine guidance.

More unrest stirred in the territories as Dixie's orphaned kittens were obtained by ShadowClan after Dixie died in childbirth. Stonestar sent runners to the three clans to rehome the kittens as some among her flock spat venom at the tiny ones and their legacy. Duskglow was hopeful that they'd be brought to RiverClan - after all, it was like, the best place ever! But it was Sagestar's decision, and the leader was begrudging at best. It was decided that WindClan would house the kittens. A WindClan caretaker named Dapplebrook accepts them as his wards.

At the next gathering, the journeying cats returned, bringing oral history from the loner Stag. They speak of a long-gone SkyClan, who was forced out by the other four clans for their unwillingness to drive off or kill the cats who had previously occupied the territory they now resided in. The walk home was quiet, as Duskglow somberly pondered the part his clan had played in displacing so many cats. Somehow, the cozy nest he'd always enjoyed felt a little less comfortable that night, and a little more ill-begotten...

Despite the chilling news and cool weather, the friendly loner Ernie pays a visit, and warrior aged cats like Duskglow are able to visit the shores of Ernie's home. Duskglow was elated to find that he lived next to the biggest river EVER, and he quickly graduated from splashing in the shallows to diving the depths. Though he wasn't quite as good at it as Bluebellblaze, he still thoroughly enjoyed digging up rainbow stones, and still keeps a nice, modest pile under his nest for good dreams as he snoozes.

The three exiled warriors returned from their banishment, renamed to Mushroompaw, Ibispaw, and Cricketpaw and forced to train under Mintleaf, Sootflame, and Lilybreeze, respectively. Duskglow thought that this all seemed rather reasonable, of course, and thought that if it were him, he'd be quite grateful for the opportunity to re-train. Sagestar had such good ideas! Duskglow held no animosity towards these returned cats, and was as chipper and friendly as ever around them.

Finally, after many moons, it would seem that the rebellion's scars were beginning to fade, and those who had had their training delayed by the unrest were allowed to rank up. Another month later, RiverClan finally settled into normalcy as Cloudyrose returned to her duties, her kittens graduating to apprenticeship. Duskglow did not at all mind the quiet, the sleepiness. In fact, he really did thrive when things were slow. It made him look like the fastest, most exciting thing in the whole camp!

The quiet was not to last. Not long after things settled, another bout of unrest was stirred as Silkyflower disappeared from camp, never to return. Much speculation was abound, and Duskglow participated in patrols scouring the territory to find her. Alas, they were unsuccessful, and Duskglow uncomfortably hoped that maybe, hopefully, she had only stepped away from the territory. Surely nothing bad had happened to her, right? There was an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach as Creekpaw was told that, should she fail to return, he'd be receiving his name at the Starlit cavern.

Mallowbrook, now going by the name Lostheart as a punishment, was the one to discover Silkyflower's whereabouts. The medicine cat's corpse had been gruesomely disfigured by the elements after drowning, and so had been buried by the river rather than returned to camp. Duskglow was terribly sad, but not nearly as sad as poor Creekpaw, who took the name Creekhollow as a reminder of the hollow place in his heart left by Silky's death. The dusky tom was a bit too dim to ponder what it meant for RiverClan to be left with only one medicine cat, but he did wonder who would end up being Creekhollow's apprentice...

Although trust remained in short supply for Mushroomshade, Ibisstrike, and Cricketcoo when their names were restored, Duskglow was happy to be amicable with them. They'd been retrained, right? The way he figured, if they weren't given any chances, they couldn't regain any trust.

Shortly after, the warrior Cobrastorm was removed from the nursery after Lavendersky grew tired of his abuse, sparking an altercation. Sagestar, teetering on banishment, chose instead to leave the warrior standing on an extremely fine line, revoking his warrior name. 'Cobra' would be forbidden from being within five fox-lengths of the nursery, and would be expected to retrain. Much like the rebels, Duskglow would continue to act normally around Cobra. After all, he was already being punished! However, those with keen eyes would notice how Duskglow's muscles flexed in preparation to strike every time Cobra so much as glanced at the nursery in his presence.